The subject invention generally relates to a heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) assembly for a motor vehicle. More specifically, the subject invention relates to a HVAC assembly that includes a drain portion having a partition that separates condensate from an evaporator and liquid from a heater core of the assembly.
Heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) assemblies for motor vehicles are well known in the art. Conventional HVAC assemblies include an evaporator core for cooling air and a heater core for heating air. As appreciated by those skilled in the art, the evaporator core generates condensate as it cools the air. As a result, a drain must be incorporated into the HVAC assembly to collect and drain the condensate.
In these conventional assemblies, the drain for the condensate from the evaporator extends from a casing for the evaporator core, through a front-of-dash wall of the vehicle, and into an engine compartment of the vehicle where the condensate drains to the ground. A casing for the heater core also includes a drain for collecting and draining any liquid, such as condensate from the heater core or possibly even engine coolant, away from a passenger compartment of the vehicle. The drain for the liquid from the heater core extends from the casing for the heater core, and also through the front-of-dash wall and into the engine compartment.
It is understood that the evaporator core may require repair service or other maintenance for various reasons. To access the evaporator core in the HVAC assembly, a repair operator must remove the casings for both the evaporator core and the heater core. To remove these casings, the operator must first pull the drains for both cores from the engine compartment of the vehicle through the front-of-dash wall. This requirement is labor intensive and time consuming, and is therefore costly.
Some conventional HVAC assemblies have responded to the burdens and inconveniences associated with having to pull both drains through the front-of-dash wall prior to accessing the evaporator core by incorporating a common drain for the evaporator and heater cores. The common drain extends from the casing for the evaporator core.
However, this response has been largely deficient because the common drain shares the drainage, or flow, of both the evaporator condensate and the liquid from the heater core without partitioning the flow. In such assemblies, without a partition, the evaporator condensate frequently xe2x80x98back-flowsxe2x80x99 into the casing for the heater core where it can contaminate, or inadvertently humidify, the air, which is undesirable. This back-flow is referred to in the art as xe2x80x9ccross-talk.xe2x80x9d Because the air in the heater casing has just been heated by the heater core, it particularly susceptible to xe2x80x98taking-upxe2x80x99 moisture from any source possible. Furthermore, manufacturing HVAC assemblies such that the common drain extends from the evaporator casing, as opposed to the heater casing, is particularly undesirable because it is more difficult to remove the evaporator casing from the vehicle than the heater casing.
Due to the inefficiencies identified in such conventional HVAC assemblies, it is desirable to provide a HVAC assembly having a drain portion extending from a casing for a heater core that includes a partition capable of separating condensate from an evaporator core and other liquid from the heater core thereby preventing cross-talk.
A heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) assembly for a motor vehicle is disclosed. The HVAC assembly includes an evaporator core, enclosed by an evaporator casing, for cooling air, and a heater core, enclosed by a heater casing, for heating the air. The evaporator core generates condensate as the air is cooled.
The subject invention includes a drain portion extending from the heater casing. Because the drain portion of the subject invention extends from the heater casing, and not the evaporator casing, and because, as described above, the heater casing is more easily removed from the vehicle than the evaporator casing, the HVAC assembly of the subject invention enables a repair operator to quickly access the evaporator core and repair or otherwise maintain the evaporator core more efficiently and cost-effectively than the prior art.
Further, the drain portion includes a partition. The partition defines a first basin and a second basin. The first basin is in fluid communication with the evaporator core for collecting and draining the condensate from the evaporator core, and the second basin in fluid communication with the heater core for collecting and draining liquid from the heater core. The partition operates to separate the condensate collected from the evaporator core from the liquid collected from the heater core as the condensate and liquid are drained from the assembly. As such, the condensate is prevented from back flowing into the heater casing and inadvertently humidifying the air in the heater casing.
Accordingly, the subject invention provides a HVAC assembly including a drain portion extending from the heater casing. Additionally, the drain portion of the subject invention includes a partition operating to separate the evaporator condensate from any liquids from the heater core as the condensate and liquids arc drained from the assembly.